I want to sue the hotel I stayed at, but I can't work out who exactly to sue. What can I do?
If you don't have details such as the hotel's registered trade name and tax number, you can ask the court to identify the correct party by requesting the hotel's records from the Ministry of Culture and Tourism. Alternatively, the Ministry publishes a list of licensed facilities and pending applicants, which you can search here: Ministry facility search page (in Turkish)
A hotel claims on its own website to be 5-star, but it's actually 4-star. What can I do?
You can report the hotel to the Advertisement Board of the Turkish Ministry of Trade for false and unlawful advertising.
My brother and I tried to book a hotel and were told it was full. When we called again asking for a male-female booking, suddenly there was availability. When we confronted them, they admitted they don't accept bookings for two men. What can we do?
The Human Rights and Equality Institution of Türkiye (TİHEK) issues fines to hotels for this kind of discrimination. You can file a complaint with them.
For a dispute with an airline over a ticket, should I go to the commercial court or to the consumer arbitration committee / consumer court?
There used to be uncertainty on this in the Turkish legal community — notably, a 2019 regional appeal court decision held that under the Montreal Convention such cases belonged in the commercial courts. However, a 2022 Court of Cassation ruling (reversal in the interest of the law) established that for tickets bought for non-commercial, non-professional purposes, the consumer arbitration committee has jurisdiction, following the procedure set out in Law No. 6502 on Consumer Protection.
My belongings were lost during a sea voyage. What should I do?
The applicable rules differ depending on the voyage — use the comparison table below to assess your situation.
Carrier liability for lost belongings — comparison table
| Instrument | Scope | Type of Goods | Liability | Compensation Limit | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Turkish Commercial Code (Art. 1138 ff.) | Domestic carriage or Turkish-flagged vessels | Cabin luggage (personal suitcases etc.) | Strict liability | Actual loss (market value) | Carrier can escape liability only by proof |
| Athens Convention (1974) | International passenger carriage by sea (Türkiye is a party) | Cabin luggage | Carrier liable with or without fault | 2,250 SDR (~87,000 TL per passenger) | Passenger may claim a higher insured value |
| Hague-Visby Rules (1968) | International carriage of cargo | Commercial cargo (not passenger luggage) | Partial liability — carrier not liable if without fault | 666.67 SDR per package or 2 SDR/kg (whichever is higher) | Passenger luggage excluded; may matter in mixed cases |
| Montreal Convention (1999) | International carriage by air — may matter in multimodal transport | Cabin luggage | Air carrier liable even without fault | 1,131 SDR (~43,000 TL) | Applies directly only where air carriage is involved |
| Consumer Protection Law (6502) | Any carriage contract where the passenger is a "consumer" | Any personal belongings | Compensation where the service is defective | A contractual cap may be an unfair term | Interpreted in the consumer's favour |
An agency's ads for a hotel say "prices from 50 TL", but on the website there's no rate at that price at all. What can I do?
You can report the advertiser. Under the decision in Advertisement Board Bulletin No. 348 (File No. 2024/4837), the advertiser will be required to produce evidence that bookings were actually available at the advertised prices.
For a problem with a flight ticket I bought using a corporate credit card, should I go to the consumer arbitration committee or the commercial court?
Purchases made with corporate credit cards are presumed to be commercial transactions, so the case can be heard by the commercial court. But if you can prove the purchase was for personal rather than business purposes, consumer arbitration committees or consumer courts may accept jurisdiction and examine your file.
I bought a flight ticket through an agency; the flight was delayed 24 hours and I suffered losses. The agency says "take it up with the airline", but the airline doesn't even have a liaison office in Türkiye. What should I do?
As a rule, agencies have no control over airlines and are not liable for decisions outside their control. However, there have been cases where — precisely because the airline had no liaison office in Türkiye — liability was imposed on the agency instead.
Someone made a booking or bought a flight ticket in another person’s name using my credit card, and the agency won’t refund me — what should I do?
If the transaction was made with 3D Secure, you should first initiate a payment dispute (chargeback) through your bank. Because of personal data protection rules, the agency may not disclose the other party’s details to you; however, so as not to obstruct your freedom to seek legal remedy, limited information — either the name of the person who made the booking or the contact details left on the booking — may be shared. Even so, we recommend consulting a lawyer to handle the process correctly.
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